Transportation Planning
Sharon Grove McCamy
2008-06-28 14:18:54
What this article notes makes sense. However any solution that involves a complex set of factors (i.e., new transportation corridors/ alternatives, or new rail options) takes time and political will.Years ago when I served on the Fauquier Board of Supervisors, I asked about VRE to Bealeton and further to Culpeper. A "future vision" was the development of a daily rail line running from Charlottesville to DC. Makes sense?
Not to those concerned about development and overdevelopment in our communities. And VRE did bring a cost to the locality. All good reasons not to proceed at that time, according to the collective wisdom of that Board of Supervisors.
However, in retrospect, wouldn't it be nice to know that residents of Bealeton could go to a train station and commute to points north? Wouldn't the idea of a town built around the station, with walkability, and stores, make sense?
Bealeton was originally a railroad town, with lovely old homes built along the rail line much as in Ashland, Virginia. It was burned during the civil war, and almost all of the original place has been obliterated over time. But the concept makes sense, and perhaps in the future, other Boards of Supervisors and other leadership will see the sense in commuter rail coming to Bealeton.
Besides, after the dramatic tax hike this year which we have all felt, maybe those of us whose children are out of the public school system could see some additional benefit for these much increased tax dollars.
Sincerely,
Sharon Grove McCamy